Lucknow: UP STF arrested one Anup Chaudhary (35) and his driver Firoz Alam (27) on late night of October 24 for duping people in the name of getting their work done in the government departments.
Identifying himself as a top boss of the Divisional Railway Users Consultative Committee (DRUCC) of the railway ministry, Anup moved around with Firoz who used to don the uniform of a police gunner.
Anup’s social media accounts show videos of him enjoying unrestricted direct access to the high security sanctum sanctorum of the Ram Temple in Ayodhya.
It also has his photographs with top political leaders of the country.
Anup has been accused of shooting off letters to the state government in Uttarakhand and Madhya Pradesh seeking government protocol in place during his visits to these states, the STF said.
He was arrested from the Circuit House in Ayodhya. The cases of fraud and cheating has been pending against him in Lucknow, Shamli, Bareilly and Prayagraj in UP while six cases are lodged with Uttarakhand, and Rajasthan police.
In a Rajasthan case, CBI has also filed a charge sheet in the court in one of the cases. He is also accused of promoting welfare schemes in the name of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Additional Superintendent of police, STF, Satyasen Yadav said, “Anup Chaudhary used to cheat people of money by claiming to get them government tenders. To appear genuine, he posted purported videos and photos with top union ministers and senior officials.”
STF said that during interrogation, Anup disclosed that seeing the protocol facility available to the ministers of the railway department he personally appointed a non-government official Shrinivas Narala as his OSD, through whom the concerned officers of the districts of Uttar Pradesh and other states are sent letters on letterheads in the format prepared in a fake manner by him.
Chaudhary told STF that during his visit to Chennai, he had availed the facility of protocol during his stay in Chennai fraudulently.
STF said that acting on tip off it intercepted an SUV on the road leading to Circuit House Ayodhya. A gunner was sitting on the front seat.
“The police personnel got down from the said vehicle and introduced himself as head constable Pawan Kumar posted in Ghaziabad and introduced the person sitting inside as Anup Chaudhary, a member of the Ministry of Railways, Government of India and told that he was appointed in his duty,” the STF said.
The other person sitting in the same vehicle introduced himself as Satendra Verma of Lucknow and told that he had met Anup Chaudhary in the waiting room while coming to the Amausi airport.
Anup discussed with me the idea of forming a company to provide visits via helicopters of various pilgrimage sites, said Satendra Verma.
STF said that during verification Pawan’s identity was found to be fake and he was arrested.
“We are probing other members of the gang of the accused,” said ASP STF, Satyasen Yadav.
